After two dreadfully dreary days, the SUN came out and I celebrated by opening the Riesling that Jessica sent us from the NY Finger Lakes. It was wonderful – a balanced, full-bodied dry white. Just how I like ’em! Thanks again Jessica 😉 I ended up having about 8 oz – 5 while cooking and another splash after dinner. The husband and I sat outside in our yard to finish our wine for dessert and I needed to be topped off!
Snack
Before we get to dinner, I made a lovely snack today: Berry Soup. OK, it was a smoothie in a bowl, but I like to eat my smoothies like chilled soups with a spoon! I made it with 1 cup frozen mixed berries, about 1/3 cup hemp milk and 1/4 cup plain yogurt. With a little coconut sprinkled on top!
With a few graham sticks for crunch –
Sweet Southern Supper
OH my gosh this was a fabulous dinner! So easy too, thanks to weekend prep.
Glazed Ham + Lima Beans with Maple-Mustard Collard Greens
I steamed the collards for about 10 minutes in a liquid composed of 1 cup vegetable broth, 1 tbsp maple syrup, 1/2 tsp dried mustard and red pepper flakes. There are a few toasted almonds on top!
I cooked the ham (pre-chopped, frozen and thawed leftover from Easter) and beans (soaked and cooked over the weekend) in a separate skillet and then de-glazed with an ounce of our Reisling. The steaming “broth” on the bottom was sweet and light – yum! The ham was so sweet and delicious!!
I couldn’t decide which photo I liked the best, so you get them all!
You could use bacon in this recipe, or honey ham from the deli. And canned or frozen lima beans!
From above –
Not including wine, this dish was about 350 kcal, 15 grams fiber and 27 grams protein. Add ~190 kcal of wine to that 😳
El Salvadoran Treasure
A big shout out to Patricia for sending me this adorable painted box from her home country of El Salvador! It’s the perfect size to fit a jewelry treasure. So cute!
I am off to rehydrate (I’m feelin’ that wine!) and get in bed early tonight. The husband tossed, turned and sniffed for an hour last night keeping us awake – I need to get some sleep back!
Mo says
Mmm…I love dry rieslings. To me, they just say SUMMER. 🙂
You dinner looks fabulous!
It is fun to see the difference in foods regionally. Living in AZ, I have a hard time finding collards (if at all.)
Laurel says
Ah, Kath, you’re such an inspiration with all these new delicious meals. If only I wasn’t so tired and unmotivated to cook.
I have a question about exercise. A coworker of mine told me recently that this past winter she did mostly weight training and was able to maintain her weight without the cardio she usually does.
Do you think that this is true in general? Like, do you think that if you switched a couple of your cardio workouts during the week to strictly weight training, you’d get the same results (as in, not having to do so much cardio)?
Bev says
Fabulous photos
Jessie says
Kath + Kath groupies :D,
So, i got eat, pray, love 2 days ago and just finished it, i am officially adding it to my list of books that changed my life…now on to the next!!
what are some of your other must-reads Kath readers?
Thanks again for the amazing suggestion! Can’t wait to see what else you all have for me!
Becky says
Wow, that was fast Jessie! I borrowed it from my aunt at Easter…and I”m not even through Italy! I’m going on a business trip next week, so I’m hoping I can get to it then. Glad to hear its that good!
Mom says
Love the box!!
Romina says
It’s interesting that you ate your smoothie as a soup, most smoothies are meals in themselves, and ought to be treated as such! It’s easy to chug it down if you drink it with a straw.
VeggieGirl says
Gorgeous weather certainly DOES call for a celebration! As do gorgeous meals :0)
Jessie says
Becky-
Its a perfect travel companion! I am not a fast reader by any means…i just couldn’t put it down! Good thing i am on spring break or i probably would have ended up skipping a few classes to read 😀
Enjoy!
Jessie says
Sorry to be a comment hog today, last one i swear!
I have a recommendation for all you readers also! Desert Flower by Waris Dirie, its a heart wrencher…and SO GOOD!!
Kyn says
Have any of you bloggers/readers ever had a problem with binge eating??
I recently had lost weight and fallen underweight for my height (5’10” 124 lbs) and have been binge eating HORRIBLY! I got up to like 127 lbs now and know I could stand to gain more weight but I feel like it’s a horrible habit I have developed and it’s hard for me to stop at night!!
It makes me feel depressed, not in control, and miserable to stuff myself like that…any past experiences or advice??
Amana says
I’ve never had collard greens. I don’t even think you can buy them up here. They look delicious though as usual!
Sarah C says
Laurel,
The reason your friend may not need to do cardio to maintain her weight is that she keeps her calories lower. Weight training is definitely good for your muscles for strength and toning, but doesn’t really give you the calorie burn. But cardio does more that just burn calories so you can lose weight/eat more. Think of your heart as a muscle that need strengthing just as much as your biceps! Cardio helps prevent heart disease, gives you more energy/endurance/stamina, relieves stress, and gives you all of those feel good endorphines!!
koootz says
your meals are so visually pleasing. it must make them 100 times more satisfying
Laurel says
Sarah C–I did forget to mention that my coworker had said she ate a lot more than usual but her weight stayed the same, which she attributed to the weight training.
I was just wondering about switching a couple of my cardio days at the gym to weight ones. I don’t want to do it without some possibility of good results though. Thanks for your help Sarah.
Eriak says
Kath (or anyone else who knows)
I tried doing a search, but no luck.. what kind of lunch bag do you use? I’m on the hunt for a new one!
Carrie says
Hey Holly and Melissa-
I live in the North Eastern part of Wisconsin near the Fox Cities.
BethT says
Kath posted the lunch bag earlier today. It is from reusablebags.com
MLT says
Kyn-
Having struggled with this myself, I sympathize with you from the bottom of my heart. really. It is so frustrating and can make you feel so helpless. The only thing I have found that works for me (well a couple things): brush your teeth early. If right after dinner is TOO early, allow yourself a snack/dessert but don’t let it turn into –oops, i ate after I brushed so i might as well keep eating. Just brush again and try to re-commit. If you have to/can, get in bed early.
Turn the light out in the kitchen.
get busy- easier said than done, but I find if i’m busy it helps like nothing else.
Don’t buy “binge” foods for awhile- mine is peanut butter so there are times when I just don’t buy it and that makes it a little harder.
Oh, and this is a huge one for me- if I let myself eat standing up it turns into an endless snack.
This isn’t really advice because I don’t know what works for you, and honestly, I still struggle with this, so i’m working on it. But these are some things that have helped me kick this bad habit in the past. Best of luck to you!
LolaFunk says
Kyn-
Im 5’5, and I was anorexic and got down to 100 pounds. Of course I loved how I looked. But something changed one day and I just began binging and eating all the time, and now Im back up to 120! Over the course of like…2 months or something.
Of course, I hate my body, but mostly I hate the binging and the eating until youre super super full.
I find it so hard to stop eating at night.
Also, why is peanut butter a lot of peoples binge foods? Mine is too.
Along with granola, and oatmeal.
NCCarter says
Laurel,
I really think you need a combo of cardio and strength training to get the full benefits of exercise. If your friend never did much in the way of weights/strength training before, I could see how maybe she’d see a higher calorie burn when she started weights, just because increased muscle means she’s going to burn more calories over the course of a day. (Any of you trainers out there can correct me if that’s not right).
I just don’t think you should rule out cardio because it’s got such great long-term benefits for your heart. I like to do about 30-60 minutues of cardio about 5 days a week, and strength moves about 3 days a week (usually after a shorter cardio session).
Ally says
I love the idea of eating your smoothie as a ‘soup’, I’m sure it makes it last a lot longer. I love smoothies but when I drink them, I tend to drink it way too fast.
Dinner looks really beautiful!
Laurel says
Thanks for the reply, NCCarter. Guess I can’t ditch some cardio after all 🙁 At least my gym has great classes.
Peanut butter is a trigger food for me too. Maybe because it’s so filling, and has a thick mouth-feel?
Cara says
That bowl of “berry soup” looks great. I tend to eat my smoothies with a spoon but never thought to add them to a bowl. Good idea 🙂
Jill says
I’m so jealous, it was murky all day here today! Anyway, where do you come up with these recipes, or is this one taken from a book? Additionally, people should start sending me awesome little boxes and all that, I wish I had admirers like that! 😉
Kyn – As hard as it may be, eat more during the day and then bingeing really cuts down. It usually means that your body is in starvation mode and cannot sense if it’s full or not, just taking calories in preparation for the next time it will deal with restriction. Probably means you need to eat more, which will just make your metabolism pick up and I doubt any weight gain! Also, I think sitting down to eat is a great idea, standing is such an unhealthy connection with food.
Kammie says
I love eating my smoothies like “soup” too! I like topping mine with pineapple or Annies Honey Graham Cracker bunnies..so good=)
Nikki says
Jessie and other readers – though its definitely not the same vibe as EPL, I was amazed by A Thousand Splendid Suns! Great writing.
Kyn – I have a couple of suggestions that have worked for me. Keeping a food diary is one of them – if you keep it long enough, you will be able to identify what triggers your binges. You may not even realize what it is! It’s just like you said: a habit (not an uncontrollable impulse, even though I know it feels like one!) You have to disconnect the part of your brain that associates food with comforting you, solving problems, or covering them up. For me, exercising relieves the stress that would have been “stuffed down” with eating. And definitely what Jill said – eating more balanced meals during the day increases your satisfaction. Soon, you will be able to call a friend, take a walk, pick up a book, whatever, instead of binging. It just takes practice (just like binging did!) You can do it! sorry for the long post, guys 🙂
ser says
After reading about you eating a smoothie with a spoon a few weeks ago, I tried it. So much more satisfying! I love your tips about HOW to eat as much as those about WHAT to eat.
living2thetruth says
Kyn and Mlt,
I believe that because you weights are still too low for your height your bodies are crying out for food and that is why you binge. I had the same problem. But, now that I am a healthy weight and feed myself regularly and appropriately…NO more bingeing. Not even a desire to!!! When I was “unnaturally thin”, there was a time I couldn’t imagine not bingeing.
I would also recommend seeing some professional help, nutritionist, counselor, mentor. All of these were very beneficial to me.
Best of luck!
Kath says
Jessie ,
Ahab’s Wife by Sena Jeter Naslund was one of the best books I have ever read.
I LOVED Eat, Pray, Love!! Finished it this weekend. Definitely a life-changer for mind/perspective/thinking for me.
Kath
KarenR says
The Time Traveller’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger is one of my all time faves for fiction. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is pretty good, too. I love all of Barbara Kingsolver’s fiction and of course her Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is a great nonfic food/eating book, along with Marion Nestle (esp. What to Eat) and Michael Pollan’s books.
KarenR says
Ooh, I forgot The Red Tent, too, by Anita Diamant. It’s a great fictionalization of the women of the Old Testament. Loved. It.
Okay, I’ll stop now. My all-women’s college is showing.
Kyn says
thank nyou so much for all of your comments…they really did help 🙂
Ange C. says
Laurel,
I think a balance of both cardio and weight training is the best way to approach working out. Keep in mind, the more muscle you have, the more calories you will burn, so weight training does more for you than just tone. I’d love to hear a trainer’s perspective on this.
And…Wonderful book: The Memory Keeper’s Daughter. Not a life-changing one like EPL, but a beautifully-written, amazing read.